Pulse of the Caribbean

#39 From Class Clown to Culture Bearer: Yohance Henley Taking Caribbean Folk Tales to the Next Level

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What happens when a class clown discovers an unexpected talent for Caribbean storytelling? For Yohance Henley, a casual classroom assignment turned into a lifelong mission to preserve and revitalize the rich tradition of Anansi folk tales for future generations.  He's added new stories and characters.

Henley's work represents an important bridge between traditional storytelling and modern media. 


Pulse of the Caribbean:

Yohanse Henley, caribbean author and storyteller, is our guest on today's Pulse of the Caribbean podcast. Hi, welcome to the Pulse of the Caribbean podcast. I'm Keisha Blyden. Yohanse Henley, caribbean author and storyteller, is our guest on today's Pulse of the Caribbean podcast. Today we'll learn more about this talented Caribbean writer who carries on cultural traditions in the story art of storytelling, inspiring the next generation. And with that we say welcome to Johanse.

Yohance Henley:

Hi, thank you for having me. Thank you for having me.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

It is certainly a pleasure to have you on the Pulse of the Caribbean podcast. Now tell us a little bit about yourself, your Caribbean roots and how you became involved in Caribbean storytelling.

Yohance Henley:

Okay, well, my name is Johansson Henley, of course, and I'm originally from St Thomas, the US Virgin Islands. I was born and raised there for pretty much my entire life. I just recently moved off the island I would say about five years ago first time ever living anywhere else. So my roots are very deep. In terms of storytelling culture. I've always been immersed in the culture, but storytelling didn't happen for me until I would say about my 12th grade year of high school.

Yohance Henley:

I met with a master storyteller and a great mentor, glenn Kwabena Davis, well-known musician, storyteller and historian in the Virgin Islands, and he taught me everything I know about the culture, bearing and bearing the stories and being a griot and passing on the traditional folk tales of Anansi and Ruta Kuma and all of those different stories that Elmo Roebuck and Delta Dosh used to tell. So, yeah, that's where I really started in 12th grade and it's kind of a funny story how it even began. I always like to tell that story because you know it sounds very noble and honorable, but in the beginning it was. It just feels like it was just like you know, it's just like I kind of got caught into doing the right thing.

Yohance Henley:

I would say that, so yeah.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

All right. So that was your senior year in high school in the US Virgin Islands and you said you got caught. How do you get caught in storytelling? Tell us about that.

Yohance Henley:

Okay, so I get caught into storytelling because I was, yeah, like I said, well, my senior year I was taking a few classes and I needed to pass this one class, which is Virgin Islands history, and of course I was a class clown so I wasn't paying attention much, I didn't have a good grade in that class and, oddly enough, he was a visiting because he's a historian, so he was a visiting professor that day, or visiting teacher, and he had us telling stories. And the deal was that if you tell a story to the best of your ability, because you're in high school, everybody try and pretend to be cool. So if you tell a story to the best of your ability, you can get, you know your grades, your grade raise, from wherever it is, you're going to be guaranteed a, b. So I like what? This is easy, this is a cakewalk about to put on a show for these people. And, um, he gave me, he gave us all the story, person groups and he gave us a story and one by one, we tell our story. And of course I went up there and I was just a royal clown and everybody was laughing and everybody was smiling and stuff. And after the story tell, he come to me and he said hey, you did an amazing job. I think you should come with me and do some storytelling. You know it could be real good for the culture, it could be good for you. You know, it could be real nice.

Yohance Henley:

Although I was a a joke staying class, I was also a very like fresh young man. So I was like me, I look too good to be out there doing this just for doing this. And I denied him then. So I denied him. Then I said no, thank you, I don't think it's something I want to do, you know. And he like okay, okay, no problem.

Yohance Henley:

And then over the summer, now I was doing nothing with my summer, you know, just a college student getting ready for college. But you know, in between the time I had nothing to do and he saw me and he he saw me at a camp that my mom was held in I'm holding. She was hosting a camp and he said you're here, you ain't doing nothing. Come, just tell a story, come with me and tell a story. And I tell him. Once again I said no, I don't do that storytelling thing dying for me. He like, you can make some money doing it. You know you could get paid $100 an hour. What job you have right now. I said, what $100 an hour? He said, man, sign me up now. Where do I sign my life away? Because I was only, like you know, a young man. I ain't have nothing to my name.

Yohance Henley:

So I went ahead with him and we started practicing. He carried me to the G Antonio Jarvis headquarters, or the old school is what they would call it, the G Antonio Jarvis school, and we started practicing and he would give me so many stories and he gave me like five to six stories and he just keeps sending me in the next room and say read that and come back and tell me the story. I read it, I come back back and tell me the story. I read it, I come back, I tell him the story. He said that's a little good work on this, work on the inflation, work on the inflection, and these words be more performative in different areas. He just started giving me so much information like overwhelming. Then he sent me back and he sent me back and he sent me back.

Yohance Henley:

I did a story.

Yohance Henley:

I did five stories, about six times each, so definitely over 20 times.

Yohance Henley:

I told different stories and then we went out to do our first story tell at a campfire, uh, out by um, the national guard, and, and um, from then, it was like, uh, my eyes were open, the. I never saw people look at me and appreciate me the way the kids did after I finished Tell a Story, and the kids, they wanted to give me high fives and hugs and I felt like a celebrity. I felt like very valued, you know, and from kids at that. So it was very, it was a special moment for me and even in that moment, I even forgot I was supposed to get paid, because I was like when is the next storyteller? Because, like I said, I never had that feeling before. It almost felt like, you know, I was a hero in a sense, and since then, I just kept telling stories and kept telling stories and I just, you know, stay by his side and allow him to guide me through it, and that's how I got into storytelling and I've been a storyteller since, I would say, 2012, 2013.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

That is awesome and that is under the mentorship, as you said, of Mr Glenn Quabina Davis, a local culture bearer, virgin Islands culture bearer icon, and that story is so telling in regards to your talent and in regards to your mentor as well, where he pushed you to continue and, like you said, you did the story over and over and over again, helping you to perfect it. Now someone could have easily walked away, but you stuck with it and you took his advice in, in, in honing, in honing your talent and your craft and, as you mentioned, when you went out for that very first storytelling, that presentation and how it was received, and where you captured the hearts of the young people with telling the story, that is truly wonderful how you got caught.

Yohance Henley:

Yeah, exactly.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So you know, with that being said, tell us about the stories then, that you learned about the characters, about the origin of those characters in the beginning. You know, what do you know about those characters, what do you know about those characters, what did you learn about those characters and the stories that you learned about and that you have shared?

Yohance Henley:

Well, I learned that there's a little bit of Nancy in all of us. If you were a kid and you had opportunities in which we all had to find a way to you know, be curious and be mischievous and even have emotions that you necessarily didn't know how to traverse, but you know how to express. You know that kind of way. That character lives in all of us in a small part or a small way, and a lot of times, as a child, you don't know how how much uh trouble or how how deep that uh that that just acting on those impulsive ways can go. So the character, nancy, of course, is a mischievous and he's a trickster and he gets a very bad name. But at the end of the day, he teaches anyone not just kids, anyone that listens to the story a lesson, a valuable lesson, about whether it may be doing the right thing, not telling lies, not taking stuff, not being mean, not being jealous, whatever it may be. You know even simple stories or simple, simple cultural, traditional norms like we have, like when the streetlights turn off, make sure you're home those type of rules to follow and those type of traditions and norms that we have in our culture to uphold. That's what those stories does and that's what those characters do In the time.

Yohance Henley:

I've advanced I wouldn't say advanced, but I've made the stories palatable to the kids of this time in terms of giving the character a bit more of a kid friendly visual and taking elements of our Caribbean roots, because the Anansi character is rooted from Africa, West Africa, the Ashanti tribe.

Yohance Henley:

So, with that being said, it holds the African and the Caribbean roots, because a lot of the supporting characters, such as Turtle and Mangus, they hold Caribbean roots in where you can go to the ocean, you can go to the beach and see turtle and you can see mangoes running around on the island. So that's where it relates and it gives the kids or the people a more relatable book and a more relatable figure to aspire to see, to aspire to you know, laugh at and to aspire to see, to aspire to laugh at and to aspire to be able to create some type of analogy within their everyday life. So the characters somehow they have evolved into what it needs to be, or what I think it needs to be, for today's time and today's kids, kids and today's traditions, all while still holding the old traditions and the old stories and the old way of teaching a kid right from wrong.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

That is remarkable in terms of what you said that you have done holding on to the tradition but certainly updating it to continue the storytelling, to continue the story of Anansi, as you said, that came from Africa and intertwining the Anansi, the attention of this generation. So that is something that is a part of the storytelling art and traditions in so many ways where we continue traditions but certainly at times where we update those things so that way it continues to attract and continues to carry on from generation to generation. And, with that being said, not only are you a storyteller, as we started off saying. We started off saying, but now you are also an author, because you have also put it on paper, in books and the world of books. It's about literacy, it's about adventure and it's about, as you said, morals, values, instilling them in the people that read the stories, whether they be the little children to perhaps older folks that may have that interest to see the new adventures and stories that are being told, to see the new adventures and stories that are being told.

Yohance Henley:

So tell us about your decision to author these new stories and series for Anansi? Yeah, of course, it started when I graduated from college. So I've been storytelling throughout the period of time, from graduating high school, you know, and I graduated from college, started my first job. I was telling stories, still telling stories, and I was approached by a gentleman named Mr Picaio, mario Picaio, and he invited me, for the most part, to to a transcript, or transcribe my story, tell and put it into a book. Now, before then I've never even fathomed the thought of being an author or having a book. And he was the first one to put that light bulb in my head and say, hey, you should be an author, these things should be, you know, put put on paper. And I was like, okay, amazing, sounds great. So we did it and it went well. I won the governor's reading challenge of the virgin islands award for it. So it did remarkable um, and that launched me into into um, becoming a self-published author, because there was more books that I felt like I wanted to do and there was more that I wanted to do with the character and just creating a series.

Yohance Henley:

And that happened when I left the island and I felt like I wasn't telling stories anymore, because I felt like I couldn't tell stories to the kids abroad. I didn't feel like they would take to my dialect, my style of performance or even understand what I was saying. So I started to lean towards learning how to self-publish my book or my own book, and I figured it out, I learned and I self-published my first self-published book in 2019. And that one was Anansi and Mangus. And then in 2020, I did a second one, anansi and Turtle, and then now I'm doing another one, which is Anansi the litter bug, and I plan to continue to build on that and the overall goal is to create it into an animated series in which I have started slightly, but it costs so much money.

Yohance Henley:

So I took all of the profit and the proceeds and the gross income from Anansi and Mangus and my wife thought I was so crazy because I took everything I earned from that and I pushed it into this animation, the first prototype animation, and it turned out amazing. It's actually on my site, on my website, and you can see it, but it's also on my site, on my website, and you can see it, but it's also on YouTube. So, yeah, but since then I've been brainstorming and collectively building a nice little team or resources to try and get the job done and create not just an ANSI series but a series with a vast amount of different stories that are related to our culture, and not just the Virgin Islands culture but Caribbean culture, and tell stories from all facets of the Caribbean. So but it's, it's a work in progress.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

Yes, it is a work in progress and keep going. You know you've mentioned your milestones with high school that was the first one, becoming the storyteller, with college graduation then becoming the author. And now, at this stage, continuing to push forward with video animation in telling the stories and bringing them to life in telling the stories and bringing them to life.

Yohance Henley:

Oh, and I forget, and illustrating, because this was the first book I illustrated, the book you're seeing right now behind of me. It was the first, this was my first time illustrating a book, so I'm very proud of this one, exceptionally proud of this one.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So we'll get to that, because I know you're also a graphic artist as well, so we'll get to that. But the newest book, as you mentioned. It tells the story and it weaves in environmental awareness. Tell us why you decided to engage youngsters or share that message about the environment.

Yohance Henley:

I think one of the first things you learn growing up on an island is take care of the ocean. It's a standard thing. You don't litter on the beaches and you take care of the ocean and you make sure you take care of the sea creatures, which is taking care of the ocean. You don't put trash all over the place and you clean up behind yourself. So, as Caribbean people, we may not be well, not all of us may not be like all first world, but we are very clean people.

Yohance Henley:

You know that's unanimous amongst Caribbean individuals. So that's one thing I knew that will resonate and relate to the kids of the Virgin Islands or the kids of the Caribbean and children, I should say the children of the Caribbean. So I know for a fact making sure that we have something rooted that can be a staple and can be handed down, whether it's a book. Give it to one brother, then to the next brother, then to a little sister, then to a cousin, and it's like it's something that can never be erased. The only way to erase the concept of keeping the ocean clean is for the ocean to disappear. Ocean won't disappear.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So, yeah, all right, now, in addition to being a storyteller, an author, you're a graphic designer and you mentioned just now that this book, this new book, you did the illustration. So tell us about the creative, artistic side as the graphic designer and bringing those characters to life with doing the illustrations. Now, now, because that is, that is another part, and and certainly where you didn't give it to someone else but you created it, the illustration. So tell us about being a graphic designer and bringing the characters to life in the stories.

Yohance Henley:

Yeah, um, it was by force. That's what I can tell you. It was by force 's why I can tell you it was by force. Um, I had an amazing uh illustrator uh at first and uh for the first two books, anantia mangus and anantia turtle. His name is shaquille m pataj amazing, and he even did the animations as well. He did the animations for the first. He did the animations for the first episode, the prototype episode or the beta episode. So he was like mind blowing, you know the way he would grasp the concept of everything and he's from Guyana, so he fully understood the roots of Caribbean and how things should look and how things should feel and the colors and everything. So it was a great relationship. However, someone that skilled will not always be that accessible to myself with somebody that doesn't have major resources. So eventually he got, you know, called upon by major production agencies and major entities and his value went up agencies and major entities and and his value went up. So, being that, his value went up respectively. You know, we had a conversation and we decided that we, you know we'd have to part different ways, but I could always still lean on him as a resource for information or knowledge you know, and advice and what's not. So we still have a good relationship there. But when he left I went into a stagnant and I went into a situation where I was like, okay, I either have to do one or two things which I don't want to do, I have to find a new illustrator who has to kind of draw very similar to what I want, or I can save myself this heartache once again and learn how to draw. And I decided to go the tougher route, which is save myself the heartache and learn how to draw. And it took me, I would say, about a year of practicing. And if it wasn't for my daughter because I also have a daughter and if it wasn't for my daughter at first, I was very discouraged when I started to draw. I would hate some of the drawings that I came up with and she would always tell me Daddy, you know, if you like it, you shouldn't worry about what anybody else is saying. I think it looks great. If you think it looks great, then it looks great. And of course it's coming from a kid. So in first, you know, first acceptance or first digesting it. You're just like well it. You're just like well, you're just a kid, you don't know what you're saying, and then, like it's almost like every time after I finish draw something, I'm looking at it and you know, I'm looking at it for a long time and she just comes by and she's like, oh wow, that looks so pretty. I like the colors here, I like the colors there, and I'm just yeah, I'm just like totally ripping the design and the stuff apart and she's just loving every little thing about it.

Yohance Henley:

So she's accepting my flaws when I'm denying, you know mine, and that's when I kind of started to just lean on it, on the advice and the encouragement that my daughter was given to me Wow, and, if you like it, it's going to be great. And then eventually I started to find my confidence. And then eventually I started to find my confidence. And then, once I started to find my confidence, then my illustration started to look really good and I started to begin to get really proud of it. And then I started drawing very actively.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So the inspiration wow came from your daughter.

Yohance Henley:

Yes, sabella Henley, yes, Amazing.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

Amazing, amazing Encouragement from your, from your baby, your princess.

Yohance Henley:

So you got to listen to your kids, man, they have the answers.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

That is. That is wonderful. That came from your daughter, that she encouraged you and she inspired you. Daddy, it's okay, it's good.

Yohance Henley:

She showed it. She showed it. So that's a funny thing because all my friends they always say that that story that in itself is a testament to the parenting between me and my wife, that my daughter can speak like that and say something like that and wouldn't just think the worst of anything. So I was like I don't know, I think that's just her, that's just her spirit, that's just who she is. She has a beautiful spirit, she thinks well of everybody and she always wants you know, to be kind and be nice and that kind of stuff. So just think it speaks to her.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So shout out to my daughter so yeah, and starting before we started this conversation, you also have a son as well and he's into his own thing, so I know you got him situated. So tell us about that and sharing your works with your children, as you have so many other children, but also sharing these stories with your children as well.

Yohance Henley:

Oh, my daughter, she loves the stories, but most of all she loves this one story. She loves when I tell it. It's Brunansi and Brugoat, because it's about two friends that get in a little scuffle. And then Anansi tried to cook, brew goat and try to make some you know mutton out of it.

Yohance Henley:

Yeah, yeah, exactly some curry goat. And she loved that story because I just just the, the climax of it and how, how it goes, and, um, the song as well, into the, into the story, and that's one of the main reasons why I want to really lean towards animation, because the songs are so like mesmerizing. But yeah, they love the stories and stuff like that. I would say my daughter is always complaining and asking don't you have any other stories? Don't you do anything other than Anansi? I guess she's tired of hearing about Anansi, so she wants to see what else I have in store. But I always tell her, like you know, anansi is my favorite character to talk about and to write about. But overall she loves the stories. She always talks to me about the stories and the music and the songs and where they come from and where do Anansi live. And then the little one of course barely could talk.

Yohance Henley:

He'd be rambling on and on, but he'd be so happy once he gets to sit down because I tell the stories in the backyard. So once we get to sit down and he's just so excited about the moment. So so yeah.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So, so, what makes you most, most proud as you, as you just sit and reflect on on on the beginnings and where you are right now, with the storytelling, with the art, what? What makes you most, most proud as you you think about continuing this with the storytelling, with the art. What makes you most proud as you think about continuing this tradition of storytelling, about authoring and the new series and sharing it with children of the new generation, as well as your own children um, my support system and my family, um and my fans as well, because I had no idea.

Yohance Henley:

I think I have some pretty dedicated fans. But I didn't realize until I see like I can take a number of years and then put out a book and I kind of have a core group of people who are like, yeah, a new book has dropped and they're there to support me. So between my family and my support group I have some really good people in my corner. My wife, definitely. She kind of pushed me to jumpstart this. Like being the illustrator, you know, I have to give a lot of appreciation and gratitude to, to my wife, especially after the crazy thing I did when I when I launched the first book and then I put all of the money in the animations. Even then she was like if you think this is a good idea, then go for it. You know, like I, I know once you're driven I can't really like stop you. The most I can do is warn you. But go for it, and it turned out to be to be a blessing. So definitely my wife. And then I have a business partner of mine, um kj hall for kj design, and he is like um every time.

Yohance Henley:

When is the next book? When? When is the next book coming? You walk in on the next book. You have any drawings, you write the next book, you're doing. The next book, when is the next? He just wouldn't. He just always always just there making sure that I'm like yo. You need to get these books out. People want these books. So having people to back you like that and keep you, keep you motivated and keep you, uh, valuing the product that you have, especially in a, in a in a niche, I would say in a niche that's not necessarily valued because tradition isn't the top anymore, but it's gonna be. It's gonna be again and I'm gonna make sure that I can drive that vehicle and use the vehicles that are important to drive home our old teachings and our old traditions. So, yeah, I would say my family, my friends and my supporters are what continues to drive me.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

Support and love. Yeah, support and love, yeah, support and love. So, with that being said, I know that you do have your book, so tell us about the, the titles of some of the stories that you do in your storytelling, the titles of your book, and also, for persons that have an interest in purchasing the books, how may they do so and where can they get in contact with you if they wanted a speaking engagement or also the storytelling as well?

Yohance Henley:

Okay, awesome. So, when it comes to storytelling, there's a lot of stories, because the stories are not just mine, the stories passed on from legendary individuals and respective individuals from our history, as I've said before, and these stories like Anansi and Amonstah, or Brunansi and Brutukoma, Brunansi and Brugot, like I told you, and then even have some really good stories that I was never able to master, but I've heard Mr Kwabena tell them and up to this day, even as a kid, it still scared me, you know, with the sock finger, jumbie and stuff like that, and the tree kids that were playing marbles in the bushes and the mother would call on them, and they that were playing marbles in the bushes and they, the mother, were calling them and they keep playing marbles and they didn't listen and they get lost and they get trapped inside a jumbie house and they had to sing a song from a talking fish. It gets crazy, I'm telling you, and the stories are amazing, but that's the type of stories I want to capture visually, you know, and re, re -input into the world. But, yeah, stories like that and the storytelling front are what I adore and what I aim to continue to tell. So, yeah, and then, when it comes to writing my stories.

Yohance Henley:

The stories that I write and I publish as a book are the ones that I created, which is Anansi and Mangus, which is a story about Anansi tricking Mangus to work for him for free and then eventually Mangus realized he's working for free and every time that Anansi is kind of cutting him out of the deal and telling him he's not getting enough fruits. But Anansi is eating the fruits at night and telling him he did a richest count. So then you know story progress. I hope they buy the book so they learn what, what actually happens. But that's one.

Yohance Henley:

And then Anansi and Total, and then Anansi the litterbug, and then I have two more that are already right, that should be coming in the future, which is Anansi and the Calabash and Anansi the Jumbie. So those stories are those. Last two are coming and those first three have already been written and you can get them at booksjohansehenleycom. That's B-O-O-K-S dot Y-O-H-A-N-C-E-H-E-N-L-E-Y dot com and that's where they can buy the books. Don't sell them on Amazon, because you know, I want to keep the integrity of my books and make sure that I can communicate with my customers effectively and efficiently. So they're all on my site where you can learn more, get more and see more from me as well, and I can have the content curated just for them, but yeah, Well, congratulations to you.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

And what is the best advice that you have gotten, or words that you live by?

Yohance Henley:

Wow, wow. I would say that negativity may spread fast, but positivity spreads slow but stays longer. So bear in mind that sometimes things might be negative, but it won't stay too long, and things that are rough or tough or challenging or bad, they won't be here that long. It's almost like you know, bad times don't last forever and good times are a memory that you get to keep forever.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So that is wonderful. And one more thing I do understand that while you have authored, you've also inspired and encouraged others as well in taking the journey to become authors as well. So tell us about your inspiring and encouraging others, some of those people that you've encouraged and inspired to put pen to paper and be an author as well.

Yohance Henley:

I'm glad you touched on that because, yes, and I love to speak about the individuals I encountered and that took the step as well and trusted me to help them with that. And there's a list actually there's Julio Julio Peets from Mr Peets Playhouse, and there's Tohira Durand and there's Howard Jones, there's Howard Peters, there's Valrica Bryson and, yeah, I think that's mainly the list, and all of them how to format the book, how to self-publish a book, where to find a nice illustrator or illustrator that suits your design and you know how to go about publishing and what's not. And all of them, I can say, were successful and I'm proud of that. I'm proud of them and I'm happy that I was able to be an outlet for them and I couldn't. I hope that I can continue to be an outlet for all of those other virgin islanders or caribbean individuals or anybody.

Yohance Henley:

I don't think it just has to be caribbean, but I do want to, like you know, hone in on taking care of my caribbean people. Um, but, yeah, and, and it's, it's, it's been a remarkable thing to think about. I don't even think about it that often, how many people I was able to to impact and help and, um, yeah, yeah, it's been great so each one teach one.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

So each one teach one. Each one teach one, help one, support and love. And it's about inspiring others. Just as you were inspired, you have inspired others and help others to realize and see their dream in putting their stories or their books out there. So we say congratulations to you, yohanze Henley, and tell us your name, yohanze. What does Yohanze mean?

Yohance Henley:

Yohanze means gift from God. Came from my mom. Gift from God. It came from my mom, heavily Christian and believe Jesus and everything that's where it stems from. My belief system is very strong.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

That is a blessing. You were here and you are here to be a blessing, and that is a part tradition of storytelling your creative works in writing, to capture the attention of the next generation with stories that share adventure and impart lessons, to empower our young people. Literacy is important because that's where it begins. Reading is the foundation of everything and then, of course, building upon morals and values and sharing the culture as well. Congratulations to you, johanse, and to your network.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

We wish you well with all your future endeavors and projects, which are ongoing, as you mentioned that you have some new stories that will be coming out, and also the video as it relates to the cinema, now, cinematography, you know, and putting it out there, as you mentioned, with the music, and putting it out there, as you mentioned, with the music, and even, as I said that as well, you know what came to mind as well A play, a play, you know, that is another thing where we have plays as well, and you have the characters in terms of yes, and that also incorporates you as well, but a play as well, because you have the characters, and then you have the storyteller, the orator telling the story, and then you have the action. So, who knows? I mean, that is certainly another great possibility that can be spread far and wide in what you do.

Yohance Henley:

So who knows?

Pulse of the Caribbean:

You have done so many different things and it is it is, it is about collaborations and all things. All things are possible. So, once again, we say congratulations to you for inspiring the young, for for picking up the mantle, even if it came about. However it came about, it came about and it was meant to be. And certainly for helping others. So we wish you well in all of your future endeavors and your books, as you continue to share values and traditions. Thank you.

Yohance Henley:

Thank you. I am Johansson Henley, storyteller, author and Caribbean illustrator, and I am the Pulse of the Caribbean.

Pulse of the Caribbean:

Thank you for joining us on the Pulse of the Caribbean podcast, where we shine the limelight on spectacular destinations, notable events and exceptional Caribbean people making positive impacts around the world. We are one Caribbean. Spread peace and love, and if there is one thing you can do, be kind and never look down on someone unless you're helping them up. Pulse of the Caribbean podcast is a production of pulseofthecaribbeancom and there's always something new to discover. If you love listening to this podcast, please leave a review and subscribe to our podcast on your favorite streaming platform. Visit our website pulseofthecaribbeancom to read interesting articles and visit our travel page to connect with tourism sites in the region. Check us out and follow us on Facebook and Instagram and tell your family and friends about Pulse of the Caribbean podcast and pulseofthecaribbeancom. Until next time, may God bless you. One Caribbean, one love.